Hawks push Canucks to brink of elimination

VANCOUVER -- It wasn't quite the scene Dave Bolland remembers from the last time he won a really, really big game here.

That was back when he was a member of Team Canada winning the gold medal at the World Junior in this building when the players littered the ice with their gloves and sticks to celebrate.

Fans littered the ice with debris with just over a minute to play after the Chicago Blackhawks scored an empty net goal to put the Vancouver Canucks away in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinal here last night.

Partially in response to two penalties called late by referees Paul Devorski and Dennis LaRue and partially in frustration with the home-town team, the garbage came from the stands as thousands of fans got up from their seats and left the building.

HAVING SOME FUN

It was Bolland who scored the winner to leave Canada's team one loss from being eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs.

"It was pretty fun then and it's pretty fun now," said Bolland, who had three goals in the World Junior but can't remember if one of them was a winner. It was his fourth goal of the playoffs.

"It was really important to win this game going back to our rink. We don't want to come back here," he said.

Bolland was left unprotected on the backside and banged in a cross-crease pass from Patrick Kane to break a 2-2 tie on the power play with Kevin Bieksa in the penalty box at 14:55 of the third period.

"They were pretty tired," he said of the Canucks defence. "Sami Salo was wandering around out there," he added of the Canuck who missed the previous two games and ended up out of position in front of the net.

Bolland made sure his shot was a sure shot.

"Roberto Luongo can get over there quick," he said.

The goal by the former London Knight, was followed by an empty net goal by Martin Havlat that gave the Hawks a 4-2 win in Game 5 and a 3-2 series lead heading back to Game 6 in Chicago tomorrow.

After two boring bouts in Chicago the two teams came back here and picked up where they left off when they checked out of G.M. Place a week earlier after Game 2.

There was more action in the first few shifts here last night than the two games combined in Chicago.

SHOOTING GALLERY

The Canucks, who only had 15 shots on goal in Game 4, outshot Chicago 11-10 in the first period - the first time they outshot the Blackhawks in any period in the series and their highest shot total for any period in the series.

Even though the Hawks had scored first, they found themselves down again.

"We are never out of the game," said Bolland. "When we get down we don't feel sorry for ourselves."

Byfuglien's second goal of the game, at 18:22 of the second, was a rare softie which slipped through the pads of Roberto Luongo to tie it up.

Kyle Wellwood was presented with an excellent chance to put the Canucks ahead in the third period but put it off the post.

But, as was the case late in Game 4, it was the Blackhawks who closed with the goals late to win.